RED
by SilverWaterFox
Summary: Each chapter based on a song from RED's new album. Axel is stranded at a new job as an ice cream seller, between tank cleanings Demyx is determined to figure out why the redhead refuses to make a move, and Reno? He's just being Reno. Eventually Axel/Demyx; M for language and sex later, as well as some graphic violence. Woot.


As Axel stood by the smooth water of the river his grandmother had always loved, the weight of the urn containing her ashes seemed to be trying to pull him into the placid green depths. Gritting his teeth, he pried the lid of the silver urn off and dug his hand into the velvety remains of Aerith Gainsborough, the only person besides his brother that ever loved him.

After watching her ashes swirl away into the distance, he sighed and clapped his hands together to free them from the residual ashes. Raking a long-fingered hand through his hair, he felt a jolt of panic in the pit of his stomach. Here he was, twenty-two, homeless, jobless…alone. His grandmother's estate had been seized by his parents as soon as they heard Aerith had been declining in health. Reno had tried to fight the seizure, but Aerith hadn't changed her will since before Axel's parents had disowned him and tried to have Reno arrested so legally, the house was theirs.

Axel scowled bitterly as he tucked the urn into one of the leather saddlebags on his motorcycle. _They never deserved that house. They never deserved to know her. _Swinging his long legs over the bike, he paused just long enough to strap on a helmet before bringing the engine to life with a roar, shattering the tranquil silence of the river glade. Steeling himself, he drove away from everything he had ever known.

"You want me to do _what?"_ demanded Axel, his green eyes bugging slightly.

His brother sighed and shook his head, setting his long red ponytail swinging gently. "Look, I know it's not exactly whatcha wanna do, but let's face it. You're kinda homeless right now." He leaned on a wall and cocked his eyebrow expectantly.

"I can get a job," Axel said defiantly, picking a piece of dried noodle on Reno's kitchen counter. "There's gotta be tons of opportunities around here. It's such a tourist trap that they've probably only got seasonal workers."

Reno shook his head firmly. "I already went around and looked for ya. There's a job at Home Supplies and one at Carpets R Us. Ya really wanna work there?"

Axel cringed at the thought of working in what had to be the most hick-infested stores in all of Twilight Town. "Not really. But…an aquarium? You know my issues, Reno. What makes you think this is a good idea?"

"Because you're not gonna be doin' anything with the animals, ya idiot. That's for trained people with educations. This is a nice cushy job sellin' ice cream. Don't let this skip past ya cause you're too stubborn to admit I'm right, yo." Then Reno did something completely unexpected and pulled Axel into a fierce but brief hug. "I miss her too," he said softly, his eyes bright. "But we gotta pull through this, Ax…I don't want a repeat of last summer."

Flushing, Axel shoved his brother away. "Fine," he growled. "I'll take the fuckin' job, you asshole. You didn't have to go there." He stalked away down the hallway and a door slammed loudly, echoing through the mostly empty apartment.

Reno sighed and his mouth twisted into a bitter frown. He hadn't wanted to push that particular button, but if it meant keeping his little brother afloat, he'd do whatever it took.

"I still can't believe you're making me do this," Axel grumbled from the passenger seat. "I could have ridden my bike over, you know. This is humiliating." He was slumped down, his bright red hair tamped down under a black bandana. The graphic band shirt and black jeans tucked into his biker boots pulled the image of sulky punk together into one cohesively pissed off Axel.

Reno rolled his eyes as they pulled into a parking lot decorated with brightly-colored fish on the pavement. "Ditch the attitude, yo. I'm doing you a goddamn favor; you could at least pretend to act grateful." Axel just snorted and crawled out of the sleek black car. _Reno never told me where he worked, but the perks must be great for him to get such a nice car._

As they walked up to the gleaming blue building loudly proclaiming "Tickets!" Axel felt just a tiny bit ashamed of himself. Reno had taken nearly two weeks off of work to make sure Axel got settled; even paying first and last month's rent on an apartment just down the hall from his own. That, combined with finding him this job, giving him a lift on his first day to make sure he'd be on time, feeding him…Axel swallowed. "Hey," he said abruptly. Reno stopped and looked back at him, one eyebrow raised. "I, uh…just wanted to say thanks. For everything." He looked away, trying to ignore the burning that meant his ears and cheeks were bright red.

Reno tousled his bandana affectionately. "Anytime, little brother. But don't get too used to it." He grinned wickedly, his sharp canine teeth making him look just a little demonic. "Soon you're gonna be on your own, yo. And Big Brother will definitely not be watchin' what happens in your apartment!" He laughed as Axel took a playful swing at him, his ears still flaming. He'd had a bit of a reputation through high school and apparently Reno hadn't forgotten.

The bubbling brunette at the front counter took one look at Axel and beamed. "You must be the new ice cream man," she said, winking at him.

Reno barked a laugh and clapped his brother on the shoulder. "So it begins, eh? Call me when ya get off shift and I'll take ya home."

Axel nodded and stuffed his hands in his pockets. "So," he said, one corner of his mouth curling up in a smirk, "do I have to a wear a Speedo for this gig or what?"

The girl's eyes widened and she giggled loudly. _Kairi,_ Axel thought, reading her nametag, _weird name. But not weirder than Axel, I guess._ "No waaay!" she said, still giggling, coming out from behind the counter and swishing her hips. Her short skirt had a small ink stain on the hem, Axel noted. Then he shook himself and put on a charming smile as she chattered away about the "totally awesome!" job he was going to have.

Nearly an hour later, Axel was propping his elbows against the cold metal counter of the ice cream shop as Kairi realized there was nothing else she could show him that would involve touching him in some way. Checking the vintage cat clock on the wall, she squeaked and called, "We're about to open!" as she dashed out the door. Axel sat in the silence and blinked. _That girl has way too much energy._

Looking around, he found a stereo dock for an mp3 player and practically moaned in joy. Digging out his own iPod, he unplugged his headphones and turned it on. After all, music was his salvation, at least when he wasn't burning down buildings. Taking a look at the quaint surroundings of his new workplace, he scrolled down to his "Acoustic Awesomeness" playlist and plugged the player in, letting soft guitar wash over him as he put scoops into tubs of hot water, washed the glass display case and wiped down all the tables and stools.

The aquarium and marine park opened at eight and it was a solid two hours before anyone opened the door to the shop. Axel had been rummaging around under the counter for some plastic spoons when he heard the gentle chiming of the bells above the door. When he scrambled to stand and greet the customer, his head caught the underside of the counter and made his eyes cross with the pain. Finally upright, he looked towards the door with watering eyes and felt his stomach take a leap towards his toes. There was a golden-haired god standing in front of him. He was pretty positive.

As he blinked, the golden aura faded and revealed an attractive but ordinary young man with hair that seemed to be a mullet crossed with Mohawk and sea green eyes that sparked under a fringe of dirty-blond hair. "Hi!" the man—_boy?—_said enthusiastically, thrusting his hand into Axel's face. "I'm Demyx! You must be new here. Are you just working for the summer or are you gonna stay here for a while? We get too many temps around here because you just make friends with them and then they leave. It's really sad, huh?"

Axel blinked. "Uh…"

Demyx beamed at him, and then blushed sheepishly. "Sorry, I was rambling, huh? I do that a lot. But don't let that fool you." His face became incredibly serious. "There is a genius hiding in here. " Then he laughed and took Axel's hand to shake it. "Your turn."

Axel moved his hand mechanically. "I'm, uhm, Axel Gainsborough. And I honestly don't know how long I'll be working here, it was just something that my brother set up and—"

"Gainsborough?" Demyx frowned slightly. "You're related to Reno?"

Axel nodded and added ruefully, "Unfortunately. But he's not so bad most of the time."

The boy nodded and Axel noticed for the first time that he was wearing a skintight wetsuit that clung to his muscled frame. He also noticed that there was a large puddle under the boy's bare feet that was growing fairly rapidly. Demyx seemed to notice the same thing because he yelped and jumped back across the edge of the door to stand on the pavement.

"Sorry," he said guiltily. "I forgot I'd already been in the tanks today. But I heard they were reopening the ice cream shop and I had to come see for myself. It's been closed for so long and today is already so hot…"

Axel huffed a short laugh through his nose as he grabbed a mop by the back of the shop and quickly soaked up the water. "No worries, man. It happens. What do you mean in the tanks?"

Demyx lit up. "Oh, I have the best job here! I'm a student at the college studying to be a marine biologist and as part of my internship, I get to feed all the animals we have here. I also have to clean the tanks but that's okay, it's actually kind of fun 'cause you get this giant underwater vacuum that sucks up all the fish poop and stuff."

"Ah. Uhm…did you want some ice cream?" Axel stepped back behind the counter and nodded at the display case. "Kairi said we've got a new flavor in today, it's called Sea-salt or something. It's the blue one."

Demyx scampered to the case, eyes narrowed as he scanned the double row of flavors. "Hmmm. Well, I do love the ocean. I'll try a double-scoop of the sea-salt stuff in a waffle cone please."

As the redhead scraped the ice cream into the cone, he couldn't help staring at Demyx whenever the boy wasn't looking. He had a golden creamy tan the color of perfect Irish cream coffee and his lips seemed to be set into a smile. Axel groaned inwardly as he felt the all-too-familiar stirrings of a crush. "Here ya go," he said, handing over the cone. Demyx's tongue darted out and took a long lick of the ice cream as Axel's blood drained from one head to the other. It had definitely been way too long since he'd scratched that particular itch. Then he mentally smacked himself. There was no way that anyone that attractive wasn't straight. Besides, he hadn't shown any hint of interest. _Give it up, idiot,_ he thought, frustrated.

"This is actually really good!" Demyx said, regarding the ice cream with a mixture of surprise and pleasure. "You should try some."

Axel cleared his throat. "Eh, yeah. Definitely. I will later, but…customers, y'know?" Demyx's face fell slightly as he fished out his money from a zippered pocket just inside the chest of his suit. Axel handed back the boy's change and told him to have a nice day. As he watched Demyx walk away, he sighed. _I have to work near that hot piece of ass all summer? With no chance of returned interest?_ He would have groaned, but the door chimed again and several parents with little kids began to filter into the store.

Demyx finished off the crunchy tip of his ice cream cone and glanced over at the shop from the sea turtle tank. "Fred, it looks like I've got a new project. Mission codename: Seduce the Incredibly Hot Ice Cream Man with the Sexy Face Tattoos." The sea turtle just blinked slowly at him, and then slowly swam away. Demyx didn't notice; he was too busy licking his fingers clean of the last sticky remains of the salty-sweet ice cream._  
_

(A.N. This has been bopping around in my brain for ages. Any interest in reading more? I'll try to update once a week or so, but with finals coming up I may not have chosen the best time to start a story. Harhar.)


End file.
